Bibliophile Amber's Book Reviews

Title: A Game of Fate Author: Scarlett St. Clair Published: September 18,2020 Publisher: Bloom Books Genre: Romance/Mythology/Greek Mythology/ Romantasy / Retellings / Fantasy/ New Adult/ Fiction Pages: 379 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: "Take her, and I will destroy this world. Take her, and I will destroy you. Take her, and I will end us all"  I read the first book told in Persephone's perspective and while I thought the story would be overly repetitive and that I wouldn't love it. I actually really enjoyed hearing the love story from Hade's perspective. While both books showed that they had different struggles, I enjoyed the different aspects.  Hades emotions, his thoughts and everything were on full display. I enjoyed that! I really enjoyed the whole telling the story from his and her perspectives with the romance genre. I loved that!

Title: A Touch of Darkness Author: Scarlett St. Clair Published: May 19,2025 Publisher: Bloom Books Genre: Mythology/Retellings/Greek Mythology/ Fantasy/ Romance/ Fiction Pages: 379 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: I have found a new obsession to read!  Persephone finally branched out. She was attending college and had an internship being a journalist! However, her mother, Demeter, was still trying to keep tabs on her and see what she was doing and giving warnings about staying away from the other gods and men.  Persephone's best friend persuaded her to go to a club one evening. Unknowingly, Persephone made a deal with Hades and she owed him a favor. When she returned to the club the next day, she demanded to know what the mark on her wrist was from and Hades told her she had made him a bargain and she owed a debt to him. She had six months to make life in the underworld. All the while she was working on a series of articles about Hades. When everything comes to a head the ...

Title: Onyx Storm Author: Rebecca Yarros Published: January 21,2025 Publisher: Red Tower Books Genre: Fantasy/ Romance/ Dragons/ Fantasy Romance Pages: 529 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: I loved it! While I feel like this book connected several things, I have questions.  I am absolutely in love with this series, but Xaden broke my heart in Iron Flame, and looking forward to this one, I thought there would be a cure, but there was nothing. There was no hope.  I loved how Violet grew into her leadership in this book like she took charge and Xaden had to take a step back.  There was some confusion with all the different places and then what Xaden's mother's husband did to them is absolutely unforgivable! They still prevailed!  This is full of action, secrets, more dragons, and how they find out what happened and what Violet's father wanted her to know.  The books that her father left her and how she had to figure out the whole deal to open the books because they ...

Title: Hold Strong Author: Robert Dugoni, Jeff Langholz &Chris Crabtree Published: January 28,2025 Publisher: Brilliance Publishing/Lake Union Publishing Genre:Historical Fiction/ Fiction/ Romance/ War/ World War II/Historical Pages: 503 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Thought-provoking, historical, tense, and heartbreaking. This was an emotional rollercoaster. The story begins with Sam and Sarah, as they are high school sweethearts. However, life and unfortunate circumstances send them in opposite directions in life and then the great depression adds to everything. Sarah is off to college and Sam joins the reserves to have an income to help his family and to save for college. However, things change drastically when Pearl Harbor occurs and Sam must go overseas to serve his country.  This sets both of their life journeys into different paths they never thought would occur. They capture Sam as a POW; meanwhile, Sarah completes a Master's degree and begins a career in the militar...

Title: Every Fall Author: Angela Douglas Expected Publication: January 28,2025 Publisher: Dream Scape Media/ Rising Action Publishers Genre: Thriller/ Horror/ Mystery/ Fiction/Mystery Thriller Pages: 384 Pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: I'm surprised because this is the author's debut novel! Wow! Get ready to pick this one up for heart-racing moments with goosebumps! This reminded me of the Simone St. James type of vibe! You have Bree who is a new mother but also a stay-at-home mom living in a not-so-great neighborhood when she has a horrendous horrifying experience where a guy hurts himself trying to run away from the security of the story. Bree is panicking and calls her husband Jake, who is a police officer and he arrives on the scene and comforts Bree and takes her home. Together they decide for the family to find a new place for the family to live, especially since there is a gang out for Jake and his family after he made a case against them.  They find a house and just as t...

Title: Under The Same Stars Author: Libba Bray Expected Publication: February 4,2025 Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux/ Macmillan Audio Genre: Historical Fiction/ Young Adult/ Historical/ World War II/ Fiction/ Mystery/ Romance/ LGBT Pages: 480 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: This is a powerful read!  While this one will make you cry, it is a very enlightening read! The author does a splendid job of mixing the different timelines and showing how all the times connect. I loved that aspect!  We start with the timeline in 2020, when the pandemic was at its peak with tension in the air and everyone on edge. It has the characters figuring out how to talk to one another and stand up for their beliefs when they are so confused and unsure how to go about it. I liked that part. Then you have Jenny's story in the 1980s where she was trying to figure out her life and her first love and how that all went up in flames after she changed so much of herself to try to show her love inter...

Title: The Night is Defying Author: Chloe C. Penaranda Expected Publication: January 28,2025 Publisher: Macmillan Audio/Bramble Genre: Fantasy/ Romance/ Fantasy Romance/ Adult Fiction/ Vampire Pages: 448 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Good Lord Ms Penaranda how could you do me like that???  Leaving me sitting on that cliff until the next one comes out??!! OMG! 😳 So addictive! During this installment, we also get a bit more of the backstory of Astraea and Nyte. The story continues where we left off at the end of the book, with Astraea coming to terms with being the star maiden and all that entails. Through noble efforts, Astraea is working on returning some of her memories and Nyte is free from the veil.  Do not start this book if you cannot binge it! It's packed with high stakes, new characters and significant plot twists that will leave you spinning in circles with your jaw dropped! This is an addictive love story that has you rooting for Astraea and Nyte through it all. It'...

Title: The Cursed Author: Harper L Woods Published: September 7,2023 Publisher: Bramble/Tor Publishing Genre: Fantasy/Romance/ Romantasy/ Witches/ Paranormal Fantasy Romance Pages: 324 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: I adored the excitement and mystery of the first novel. It was addicting! I was expecting the same experience from this one BUT, this one was a struggle for me. There was a lot of inner monologue and it wasn't thrilling and addicting. There was a lot of possessiveness and a lot of angry sex. The ending was very rushed, but it did save my whole opinion of the novel. This book did lack that addictive mystery aspect, and that was disappointing, but I have high hopes for the next installment. There is a lot of spice in this novel but the part that was kind of eh about the novel was that it was like Willow wanted to say no but her body was saying yes type of deal that was kind of a kink that I don't like.

Title: Finlay Donovan Rolls The Dice Author: Elle Cosimano Published: March 4,2024 Publisher: St. Martins Publishing Group/Minotaur Books/ Macmillan Audio Genre: Cozy Mystery/ Mystery/ Romance/ Thriller/Fiction/ Contemporary Pages: 315 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Finlay and Vero got themselves in a pickle in the last book and now they must travel to try to fix that issue and help Vero find her friend. However, when they decide to go to Atlantic City to try to rectify their problems and solve them all, Steven, her mother, and the kids all tag along. So what they were originally trying to pass off as a girl's weekend turned into a family vacation type of deal.  They have a hard time maneuvering the escapades as they have so many eyes on them and everything gets a tad bit trickier when Nick, Georgia, and the police show up at the hotel they are staying at because they lost track of Felix.  This one was the most unbelievable of all the series so far, but I think this one was mu...

Title: The Forest King’s Daughter Author: Elly Blake Expected Publication: February 11,2025 Publisher: Little Brown Young Readers/Hatchett Books Genre: Fantasy/ Romance/ Romania’s/Young Adukt/ Fiction/ High Fantasy Pages: 384 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Talk about a fantastic book!  This is a fantasy romance book full of history, lore, and, of course, forced proximity romance! Throwing the Romeo and Juliet story out there has striking similarities to this story, and I loved the vibe! Cassia is the Sylvan King's daughter, a princess in her own right. When she was younger, she met a Dracu Boy, Zeru by a Yew Tree and they would share stories, trinkets, and gifts. All of that changed one day when Zeru gave Cassia an old ring from his mother's jewelry box. Thinking his mother wouldn't miss is because it was so old and ugly, he was mistaken. The ring belonged to the Dracu Queen, the Solis Gemma. Legend says this ancient ring, a prophetic artifact of the Ancients, possesses g...

Title: Listen to Your Sister Author: Neena Viel Expected Publication: February 4,2025 Publisher: MacMillan Audio/ St. Martins Press Genre: Horror/ Thriller/ Fiction/ MysteryThriller/ Adult Pages: 352 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: This was an unusually peculiar adventure, but an adventure nonetheless. However, it was definitely worth the read! Full of family drama that is TV drama worthy and then jump into a paranormal nightmare!  Calla Williams, a 25-year-old woman, is trying to live her life and make ends meet. However, she is also her 17-year-old brother's guardian, trying to prevent him from going into foster care. When a protest turns ugly and the police go to her apartment, her brothers are in trouble. They quickly escape by borrowing a car and going to a secluded cabin.  This is anything but a dream escape, more like a nightmare escape. The nightmares they are experiencing, they have to figure out what in their life and history is causing the nightmares to escape. The a...

Title: The Stars Are Dying Author: Chloe C. Penaranda Published: August 8,2023 Publisher: Bramble/Tor Publishing Genre: Fantasy/Romance/Romantancy/ Magic/Vampire/Fae/Fiction Pages: 566 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Enchanting, addictive, and intriguing are some words that come to mind when I talk about this story!  I loved it😍 like the whole story; I thought it was going to be like The Maze Runner and The Hunger Games blended with a splash of fantasy and vampires, but I was so wrong and I’ve never accepted defeat so quickly!  Astraea is with an evil possessive man, Hektor, who is basically using her and holding her prisoner with benefits in his house, and her friend Cassia is going to compete in the Tyrant Kings games to try to make good changes for the people of the one who wins! Cassia and Astraea make a plan for Astraea to go with Cassia to escape Hektor's hold. On their way to the competition, Hektor kills Cassia; therefore, Astraea chooses to compete instead, and she po...

Title: Vantage Point Author: Sara Sligar Published: January 13,2025 Publisher: MacMillan Audio/ Farrar Straus and Giroux Genre: Thriller/Fiction/Mystery/Gothic/Horror/Mystery Thriller/Suspense Pages: 400 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Wow! 🤯 A mind-blowing mystery and a family conspiracy that haunts a family!  Teddy and Jess seem to have it all. They have the wealth, a campaign for the Senate for Teddy, and the complete team behind them. However, Clara is a bit of a bigger eyesore for the family. Jess and Clara have been friends since grade school. Clara has a wealthy social life and Jess is a poverty child who lives with her single mother, who cleans hotel rooms for a living.  As life goes on, Clara has an eating disorder and receives help for it, but Jess and Teddy bond over their love for Clara and eventually start dating and get married. For Jess, it's like a classic rags to riches type of story and for Teddy, it is a married-for-love, not money type of story that is...

Title: Finlay Donovan Jumps The Gun Author: Elle Cosimano Published: January 31,2023 Publisher: Minotaur Books/Macmillan Audio Genre: Mystery/Cozy Mystery/Fiction/ Mystery Thriller/ Contemporary Pages: 304 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: This series has hooked me for a while now, and each episode includes humor relatable to mothers. Not saying that ALL moms have near-death experiences, accidental deaths, and mob connections but her life is humorous because of some of the surprising situations she's experienced with her toddler I have gone through with my kids, and sometimes knowing that someone is writing about those situations means that you are not alone.  Finlay and Vera are in another unfortunate circumstance where they must find out who the person who is blackmailing Felix is or else he will come after them. After talking with Cam, they conclude they have a dirty cop in the mix. So when the opportunity is to spend a week at a police camp for citizens, they take the opportunity ...

Title: Babylonia Author: Costanza Casati Published: January 14,2025 Publisher: RB Media/Sourcebooks Landmark Genre: Historical Fiction/Mythology/Fantasy/Fiction/ Historical/Retelling Pages: 448 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Wow! 🤯  This book blows me away! This is the first I've read by this author and I'm awestruck by the story. Semiramis is a nobody. She is an orphan that a merchant took home to use as a bargaining thing later on. Relentless mockery about her mother, who committed suicide after falling for a man who did not return her feelings and had a daughter. The father did not claim the baby. Unable to bear the shame, she committed suicide by tying rocks to her ankles and jumping into the water. The village knows about the incident, but they underestimate her, and Semiramis plots her escape. However, the effects of the war and the king's death make her unable to escape. She gains the attention of Onnes, the king's bastard bother, who has similar backgrounds, ...

Title: The Songbird and The Heart of Stone Author: Carissa Broadbent Published: November 19,2024 Publisher: Bramble Books/ Tor Publishing Group Genre: Fantasy/Romance/Vampire/Fiction/ Fantasy Romance Pages: 430 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Broadbent has done it again! The themes she weaves through her stories are intricate and balanced. The way she writes is as if she's a siren singing to the readers. After all, with her books, once I get about 30% through the book, I clear my schedule because I am entangled in her story and reading way past my bedtime!  In this installment, we start with a beloved character, Mische. In her first two books of this series, Mische is a loveable character that we have come to love but, in this book, we get a background story of her and how she became a vampire. Her story shatters you. The love she had for a God and whom she married is astonishing and shows a similar theme of women who are in abusive relationships when they see that what they have ...

Title: Death of a Ghostwriter Author: Gaynor Torrance Expected Publication: February 4,2025 Publisher: Jorge Books Genre: Mystery/Cozy Mystery Pages: 248 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Loving cozy mysteries, this one grabbed my interest quickly.  Albert Franklynn was leaving his home when he died in an accident, that later the police think that the accident was murder. Naturally, the shock is overwhelming for his wife, Sylvie. Grief pulls many emotions from a person; however, when two other women arrive, they say they are also Albert's wives. None of the wives knew about each other, they all thought that they were the only ones. How did Albert have three wives without any of them getting suspicious? Sylvie, one of the other wives, and her friend Liz decide that they are going to get to the bottom of everything: his death, how he managed three separate lives, and then if he was hiding anything else.  So, this was the first of a new series and when I read the description, this one...

Title: We Could Be Rats Author: Emily Austen Expected Publication: January 28,2025 Publisher: Atria Books Genre: Fiction/Contemporary/LGBT/MentalHealth/ Realistic Fiction/ Literary Fiction Pages: 256 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: I never knew that I would fall in love with a book so quickly. The way the book was written was very unique as in diary/suicide note entries, which were informative and helped the reader understand what all was going on at the time.  Sigrid, a lesbian who is barely out of her teens lives in a small conservative town and shes a high school dropout and she never feels like she fits in nor does she feel like she is understood.  This book was a knockout big time! Sigrid's sister Margit are two completely different people and they grew up in a house where several times there were loud arguments and anger issues. Margit's escape was trying to control everything around her and succeed in any way she could. Sigrid's escape is her imagination, she...

Title: A Killing Cold Author: Kate Alice Marshall Expected Publication: February 4,2025 Publisher: Macmillan Audio/Flatiron Books Genre: Thriller/Mystery/Suspense/Mystery Thriller Pages: 304 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Wow! After you read it, you will need to digest the epic proportions of how messed up everything is and the extent to which a family will go to protect its wealth and reputation. Some of the story is twisted, messed up, and far-fetched, but the story is still good!  Meeting a boyfriend's family can make anyone have anxiety now, amp that anxiety to level ten when the family is very wealthy and they also give everyone the first-degree of questioning to know who they are let into the family. Theo has an interesting history. She knows nothing about her life before her adoptive parents took her in and she did not have the best upbringing in life. But the longer she is there, she has flashbacks, begins remembering things, and has Deja Vu experiences at one cabin.  ...

Title: The Secret Year Author: Jennifer Hubbard Published: January 7,2025 Publisher: Penguin Group/Young Readers Group Genre: YA/Romance/Fiction/Contemporary:Realistic Fiction Pages: 192 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 Review: Forbidden love. Something that appeals to so many, but this book contains forbidden love, and death and shows the rift between poorer families and the high regard the wealthy families have for, themselves and their social standing.  Colt is your kid who comes from nothing and has a passionate romance with Julia who has it all. When Julia dies in a car accident suddenly, Colt is beside himself. He has nothing to remember their romance other than her diary filled with entries to him. With each entry written to him, he can't forget the moments they spent time together. However, no one knew about their romance except for the two. How can you mourn and get over someone who was never actually yours to begin with?  This was an addicting interesting read that had me...

Title: The Empress Author: Kristin Cast Published: January 7,2025 Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire Genre:Fantasy/Romance/Adult Fiction/Romantasy Pages: 400 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: This was an interesting tale. Hannah was having a terrible time with work, where she was supposed to deliver a pitch to a new company. She struggled with her word choices so, Stephanie took over the pitch and made it work. So, not only did she fail, but someone else took over the pitch and while she was in a self-loathing era she went to her boyfriend's house in the hopes that he could help her forget. Only when she arrived was he entertaining another woman and breaking it off with her. She left in tears while a stranger gave her his monogrammed handkerchief.  Then she falls and when she does she wakes up somewhere she doesn't know where she is and when she tries to escape she ends up in a tavern with people who end up trying to kill her because she's a witch when she is rescued by K...

Title: A Sliver of Darkness Author: C.J. Tudor Published: November 8,2022 Publisher: Ballantine Books Genre: Horror/Short Stories/ Thriller/Mystery/Fiction Pages: 236 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: A book filled with creepy, eerie, and brilliantly compelling stories.  What set this book apart from different short story books that I've read was before each story you have an introduction from the author that kind of gives a back story with the inspiration for writing the story the struggles of writing the short story and also gives a personal glimpse into the mind of Tudor. That set this apart!  Each story gave me a new fear that I had never thought about before today!  I feel like there is a short story in this book for every horror fan. The stories are of different lengths and they are easy to read and go through. They are engaging.  I believe that my favorite story in the collection was Gloria.  Gloria has a different type of job, she either takes care of the a...

Title: The Coven Author: Harper L Woods Published: March 16,2023 Publisher: Tor Publishing/Bramble Genre: Fantasy/Romance/Paranormal/Witches/Vampires Pages: 302 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: OMG! This book reminds me of the Netflix series Sabrina! I went into this book blind and I am sooo glad I did and I am also happy that I bought both books!  I started the second book as soon as I finished the first one. I am not so great with patience and sitting on a cliffhanger!  Willow's mother passed away and because of this her mother's magic passed down to her and she is her father's ultimate weapon. She reluctantly returns to Hallow's Grove University to learn more about her magic and when she gets there she challenges and uncovers secrets.  Willow said, "If it is order that you value, then I will bring you nothing but chaos".  She is so fierce and I love it!  However, Gray, the headmaster, watches her and takes care of her. He also claims her so that none of the...

Title: The Ashes & The Star-Cursed King Author: Carissa Broadbent Published: April 14,2023 Publisher: Nasyra Publishing Genre: Fantasy/Romance/Paranormal/Vampires Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Honestly with this book I mourned with Oraya. From her father's death and turning into a prisoner in her kingdom to the pain and betrayal of Raihn and everything he did that killed me for her. Now, like many things in life, his actions were not all that they seemed but still Oraya went through a lot and went through it all alone.  While the first book kind of gave us the fairy tale love and all the feels then shattered our heart in two when he betrayed her. This book was kind of like a second chance romance to try to help them get to know each other and to give them a chance to understand one another too. I really loved that in this book Oraya was able to get the answers that she was looking for and she finally understands more about how she came to be and her history. However, she also learne...

Title: Dream Girl Drama Author: Tessa Bailey Expected Publication: February 4,2025 Publisher: Avon & Harper Voyager Genre: Romance/Sports Romance/ Contemporary/ Fiction/ Hockey Pages: 320 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Talk about awe-inspiring!  Chloe is a prodigy child who has been sheltered her whole life in a small town when she has a chance encounter with Sig. Sig was on his way to dinner with his father when his truck broke down and he walked to the country club that was close to making a phone call to try to get his truck working so he could attend the dinner. When he is met with roadblocks by the front desk Chloe saves him saying he is her friend and is allowed entry. They spend time together and while things start to get steamy they stop because they BOTH had previous engagements.  When Sig arrives at the house of his father's fiancee he makes a terrible discovery. Chloe will be his step-sister soon and that makes everything more complicated. At the dinner, Sig off...

Title: Emily Wilde’s Map of The Otherlands Author: Heather Fawcett Published: January 16 ,2024 Publisher: Del Rey Books/Random House Audio Genre: Fantasy/Romance/Historical Fiction Pages: 370 pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: I fell in love with this series in the first book and continuing to the second book the story continued beautifully! I adored it!  Wendell and Emily are back at Cambridge and Emily has tenure. At first, it seems to be everything she wanted in the first book but, now she has to fight to keep her spot. Because one scholar has found evidence of Wendell paying people off to create evidence for his writings and because she is associated with him, her work integrity is in jeopardy as well!  Wendell has a whole new problem of his own, his stepmother is trying to poison him and of course, she sends someone to poison him on his birthday. (Which I believe he is more upset about than the actual poisoning)  I do enjoy how Wendell and Emily's relationship is blossom...

Title: The Starlight Heir Author: Amalie Howard Expected Publication: January 7,2025 Publisher: Harper Audio/Avon Books Genre: Romance/SciFi/Fantasy/Mythology Pages: 368 Pages Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: This read had all the feels! There was the mystery, fantasy, suspense, and the feeling you were reading a tale from mythology! I adored it!  The slow-burn romance was KILLER in this story! Howard wrote that magnificently, then the mythical creatures threw in! The magic aspect was great, plus the world she made worked wonderfully and it wasn't overpowering with all the secrets! The secrets plus the hidden prophecy wee great, Howard has woven a web so delicately and well that even nonfantasy lovers would get caught in the web.  We start off the story with Suraya who is minding her own business when she receives an invite to the palace, to go meet the prince as he is looking for a wife. While she is not enthusiastic about the prospect she also knows she has to go. So she goes a...